"We started to realize that we might have a little bit of a problem on our hands because ... if we just pulled the plug on their criminal infrastructure and threw everybody in jail, the victims of this were going to be without Internet service," said Tom Grasso, an FBI supervisory special agent. "The average user would open up Internet Explorer and get `page not found' and think the Internet is broken."

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No, most of them would figure out pretty quickly that their computer was broken, not the internet, and take it to be repair. I make my living of idiots just like this, and have cleans too many DNS redirects and search redirects to count...

Seriously, the FBI should have never set up the "safety net". All it did was prolong the time people's computers were infected, which likely disabled the Anti-Virus, meaning the FBI purposefulness prolongs the time a persons computer was vulnerable. If they had pulled the plug right away people would have already taken their computers in right away to be cleaned and this wouldn't be an issue, and people wouldn't have been left vulnerable all this time. I can't even begin to express how pissed off this makes me that the FBI did something so idiotic that left so many people vulnerable...

I mean their logic makes absolutely no sense. They said they brought the safety net online to allow people time to clean their machines. But then in the next breath say most people don't even know they are infected, and won't know until the safety net is taken offline. So why the F did they put the safety net in place if they weren't going to inform people they were infected? If they were going to do this, they should have not allowed infected machines to continue to function on the internet, and instead use the DNS redirect to display a page informing the person that their computer was infected and that they wouldn't have internet access until it was cleaned.

Not to mention only ~20,000(5.75%) of the infected computers are in the US. So why are we stuck with the bill? Just another case of the US tax payer footing the bill for the rest of the world that would just as soon spit in our faces if they had the chance...

My country's web site ,Boy this was huge and the link the FBI gave i was green.yet this site gives out the dns server # that are redirects.You come to think of it ,Would the ISP not have to change this in the first place,Last week my modem shut off for like 2 mins then it turned back on.Could have been Cogeco replacing the bad DNS servers?

Not to mention only ~20,000(5.75%) of the infected computers are in the US. So why are we stuck with the bill? Just another case of the US tax payer footing the bill for the rest of the world that would just as soon spit in our faces if they had the chance...

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Yeah dam right. America should stop footing the bill and keep it's god dam nose out. Why does America think it can start shutting down websites in other countrys (sopa,pipa) and prosecute the owners over a American law, isn't american law for america.

Yeah dam right. America should stop footing the bill and keep it's god dam nose out. Why does America think it can start shutting down websites in other countrys (sopa,pipa) and prosecute the owners over a American law, isn't american law for america.

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Well, if the other countries don't like that the US can shutdown websites in other countries, maybe those other countries should start managing their own domain names and not rely on the US to do it for them.

Yeah dam right. America should stop footing the bill and keep it's god dam nose out. Why does America think it can start shutting down websites in other countrys (sopa,pipa) and prosecute the owners over a American law, isn't american law for america.

It was in a news article a while back, I don't know if they actually have done so yet, but basically the FBI said they have the power to seize any domain that is registered with a US registrar, which is pretty much all of them since all but a few of the small the registrars are all based in the US. So they can shut down any site by seizing the domain. They can't of course seize assets, such as servers, that aren't in the US, so the site can just be brought back up with a new domain name...

Yeah...350,000 infected users of 2.2 billion. I have a hard time caring about the subject matter but as newtekie1, the fact the FBI paid a (or many) private company a fortune to protect against something so minor pisses me off. And these are the same people that want to police the internet at large. Hell to the no!

No, most of them would figure out pretty quickly that their computer was broken, not the internet, and take it to be repair. I make my living of idiots just like this, and have cleans too many DNS redirects and search redirects to count...

Seriously, the FBI should have never set up the "safety net". All it did was prolong the time people's computers were infected, which likely disabled the Anti-Virus, meaning the FBI purposefulness prolongs the time a persons computer was vulnerable. If they had pulled the plug right away people would have already taken their computers in right away to be cleaned and this wouldn't be an issue, and people wouldn't have been left vulnerable all this time. I can't even begin to express how pissed off this makes me that the FBI did something so idiotic that left so many people vulnerable...

I mean their logic makes absolutely no sense. They said they brought the safety net online to allow people time to clean their machines. But then in the next breath say most people don't even know they are infected, and won't know until the safety net is taken offline. So why the F did they put the safety net in place if they weren't going to inform people they were infected? If they were going to do this, they should have not allowed infected machines to continue to function on the internet, and instead use the DNS redirect to display a page informing the person that their computer was infected and that they wouldn't have internet access until it was cleaned.

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I couldn't agree more. Pull the plug NOW. So what if millions of people are inconvenienced? Their computers are compromised and this is a wake up call. Should have done it then.

Also, I know what you mean by making your money off idiots. Seriously, these people are clueless. However, while I'm happy to take their money to fix their problems, I don't rip them off, either. I always do the job for a fair price and give them the best advice I can.

Seriously, these people are clueless. However, while I'm happy to take their money to fix their problems, I don't rip them off, either. I always do the job for a fair price and give them the best advice I can.

I just do this in my spare time as an occasional earner. I charge one price for a basic fix, like a broken application, wireless problem etc. Where I need to reinstall the OS, I charge a higher price. If I need to replace hardware, then I play it by ear, depending on what the problem is. Also, I don't charge by the hour, but by the job, as that would rack up the charges and I won't get any business.

The people who own computers and do not know how to repair them are not "idiots".
It's no different than calling someone to repair a broken appliance or taking your car to the shop to have something done.
Sure, a lot of us know how to repair and maintain anything we own that's electronic and mechanical, but that's because we're tech junkies.
Everyone here should be thankful they have a good technical aptitude and not be condescending. You know that there will be times when you call someone in to fix something and they will make you look like a n00b.

That being said, if people want to pay me to fix their computers I'm happy to obligue.
Just yesterday I got a block of Habanero cheese, a chocolate & caramel cake and a dozen farm-fresh eggs for cleaning the dust out of a computer to solve a minor heat problem.

The people who own computers and do not know how to repair them are not "idiots".
It's no different than calling someone to repair a broken appliance or taking your car to the shop to have something done.
Sure, a lot of us know how to repair and maintain anything we own that's electronic and mechanical, but that's because we're tech junkies.
Everyone here should be thankful they have a good technical aptitude and not be condescending. You know that there will be times when you call someone in to fix something and they will make you look like a n00b.

That being said, if people want to pay me to fix their computers I'm happy to obligue.
Just yesterday I got a block of Habanero cheese, a chocolate & caramel cake and a dozen farm-fresh eggs for cleaning the dust out of a computer to solve a minor heat problem.

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I think you miss the point, K. Sure, people's skills lie in all different areas. However, "clueless" doesn't simply mean uninformed. It means people who are just basically stupid in life and tend to screw up their computers as part of that stupidity and can't figure out the simplest thing for themselves (and I mean the simplest). They also tend to be piss-poor at taking advice or instructions from tech support.

In my job, providing IT support, I see the difference between the "clueless" and the "uninformed" or "inexperienced" all the time and the difference is glaringly obvious. The clueless can't even follow the basic instructions I give them FFS. No wonder they lose our respect and we talk about them in derogatory tones.

Not to mention only ~20,000(5.75%) of the infected computers are in the US. So why are we stuck with the bill? Just another case of the US tax payer footing the bill for the rest of the world that would just as soon spit in our faces if they had the chance...

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Footing the bill for the rest of the world? did the rest of the world ask the FBI to do this then did they? or is it just another case of the good ol US of A thinking they own the internet?